The Patriot Post® · Friday Short Cuts

Upright: “Trump, say the Democrats, is ‘unwilling to compromise.’ But when he asks for only $5 billion for a project with a U.S. Customs and Border Protection estimated price tag of $18 billion spent over 10 years, that is already a compromise. … Obama, after insisting he lacked authority, used an executive order to create Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals — even though immigration law is up to Congress. But Trump can’t use $5 billion from this year’s $700 billion defense budget for a down payment on a border wall for national security, the principal job of the commander in chief?” —Larry Elder

For the record: “There [are Democrats] saying that a wall doesn’t work. Agents need an enduring capability to slow people down [at the border]. It provides an anchor for them to add technology, access roads, and patrol response to protect our border. We always have a safer border where we have that barrier. People who don’t believe it works — why do they have fences around their homes and lock their doors at night? … Walls work.” —acting ICE Director Ronald Vitiello

Observations: “It isn’t being snarky or arch to stress how inept experts are at predicting the future. It’s being prudent. Because they are deeply knowledgeable in a particular field, experts are more prone than others to view the world through a too-narrow lens, assuming that the current trends they understand so well are indicators of what is to come. Their expertise reinforces their confidence in their own analysis, blinding them to contrary data or disconfirming evidence.” —Jeff Jacoby

Braying Jenny: “We’re gonna go in and impeach the motherf—ker.” —newly sworn-in Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), who doubled down later, adding, “I will always speak truth to power.” (Flashback: “You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about. That’s why I believe, if we are fortunate enough to win back the House and or the Senate, that’s when civility can start again.” —Hillary Clinton, October 2018)

Non Compos Mentis: “Show us your papers. Release your birth certificate. It’s all part of the right’s disgusting effort to use race-baiting and fear-mongering to distract our country and divide our people while they rig the system for the rich and powerful.” —Elizabeth Warren’s presidential website, comparing “birtherism” with criticism of her phony claims of Native American ancestry

Despicable: “I now call the House to order on behalf of all of America’s children.” —Nancy Pelosi (Well, not ALL children…)

And last… “As I have stated many times, if the Democrats take over the House or Senate, there will be disruption to the Financial Markets. We won the Senate, they won the House. Things will settle down. They only want to impeach me because they know they can’t win in 2020, too much success!” —Donald Trump